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Online by Design: Wacky Game Jokez 4 Kidz

On this type of review, I'll be taking a look at exclusive content that you can find on the web. It can be anything from an web series to websites; anything that catches my fancy and interest. For the first "Online by Design" review, let's take a look at the cartoon parody series: Wacky Game Jokez 4 Kids.

The Premise: The story is simple and quite enjoyable. Mickey, a crook and thief from NYC, is kidnapped and held against his will to create online video game parodies for a company called VGV, Video Game Videos. He is forced and trapped to stay inside the company building and create these parodies with two other employees who are his "top-notch" film crew: June, an inept and somewhat airhead girl gamer who has become the brunt and parody of the stereotypes for girls who play video games, and Eric, an overweight and acne-faced "robot" with a Legend of Zelda triforce t-shirt who usually suffers the abuse and physical attacks from Mickey. Rounding out the cast is their boss and Wario look-a-like who continues to breathe down Mickey's neck about uploading quality video game parodies.

The chief, Eric, Mickey, and June in the first episode of WGJ4K

The cartoon web show has featured at least 3 different common formats:

Game Parodies: Mickey, June and Eric create parodies on popular videos games such as Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Metal Gear Solid, Legend of Zelda, and Super Mario.

Game Chat...with Mickey the Dick: Mickey interviews guests from other popular web content, sites, and shows.

Mickey's Magical Mail Bag: Mickey reads and comments on the mail sent from his "fans".

Where to find it: User HotDiggedyDemon is the creative mastermind behind the series and you can locate the series on such gaming websites like Newgrounds.com. It is also available on his personal YouTube and website, http://hotdiggedydemon.com/.

Looks like June was the only person who could take Solid Snake down!

The Good: The quality of the cartoon is amazing! Each video in the series continues to grow and the illustrations are top-notch; HotDiggedyDemon really has some talent. The parodies and jokes are really funny because some of them are so terrible that it is hilarious. The characters are really well developed because they have a dirty, mean or stupid quality about them that makes them likable...even Mickey "the Dick" is hilarious and quite a favourite between fans of the series. We get to see them interact with each other behind the scenes because it isn't just a show about video game parodies but rather about their experience making the show. This series has become one of the gems on Newgrounds and each video continues to turn fans who hated it over towards the fandom.

Mario again?

The Bad: For a show about parodying video game parodies, there aren't much of them. We briefly get snippets of games in each video where most of the videos is usually about Mickey, June, and Eric in the company dealing with their whole experience. Another problem is when they do choose to parody some video games, they usually stick towards the usual characters from the Nintendo era (i.e., Mario, Sonic, Link, Samus, etc.). The one tiny problem is that in recent videos, the creator stopped including the very addicting intro song that basically explained the premise of the show...it really gets catchy after the first time you hear it.

The Results: 9.5/10!

People may disagree with me for giving this series such a high score but it really resonated with me BECAUSE I am a gamer who has played video games for my entire life. I got all the jokes and really enjoyed every episode that has come out. The only reason that it isn't perfect is because of losing the intro and the lack of variety of video games that are parodied. This series is incredibly hilarious and I can't wait to see what comes next. Maybe some parodies for Resident Evil, Silent Hill, Halo, and fighting games like Tekken or Street Fighter?

Agree or Disagree with the score and assessment? Then leave a comment below and share your thoughts about the content and what you think it deserves. See you later on the next Online by Design.

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About Justin Carreiro

Justin is a longtime TV buff and gamer. He loves chatting about shows, playing video and board games, and his not-so-secret love for reality tv. He is also a fan of horror movies, music and a bookworm at heart. He spends his time in Toronto working in PR and Social Media.